1. Field
Aspects of embodiments according to the present invention relate to a rechargeable battery.
2. Description of Related Art
An exemplary lithium-ion battery includes a protective device, such as a positive temperature coefficient (PTC) device or a thermal fuse for protecting a temperature rise when the internal temperature of a battery abnormally increases due to an abnormality of the battery. The protective device may be positioned outside the battery. In such a case, however, the sensitivity of detecting heat generated inside the battery may be lowered. To overcome this, a structure in which a protective device that can be inserted into a battery has been developed.
In order to facilitate installation of the protective device, a structure for shifting a position of an electrode terminal from the center to a side of the battery has been proposed. However, when a large-capacity battery is accommodated in a battery tray and undergoes charge/discharge processes, such a shift in position of the electrode terminal (to accommodate the protective device) may make it difficult to utilize existing charge/discharge equipment. This is because existing charge/discharge equipment may be configured to provide a charge/discharge plug on an electrode terminal positioned at the center of a cap plate of the battery. Accordingly, this may lead to undesirably lowering compatibility of rechargeable batteries with existing charge/discharge equipment.